Posts Tagged ‘The Hollies’

Roosevelt Jamison was songwriter, artist manager and publicist whose most notable contribution to popular music was the soulful gem he wrote, “That’s How Strong My Love Is.” First recorded by O.V. Wright in 1964, the song had a remarkable life, which found its way on to records by Otis Redding, the Rolling Stones, Candi Staton, Taj Mahal, the Hollies, Bryan Ferry, Humble Pie, Percy Sledge, Buddy Miller, and many more. Besides managing Wright, Jamison also oversaw soul singer, James Carr‘s career for a bit. Under Jamison’s watch, Carr had a major hit with “The Dark End Of The Street.” In later years, Jamison conducted sickle-cell research and taught Anatomy and Physiology. He was also worked at the hematology lab at the City of Memphis Hospital for many years. Roosevelt James passed away at the age of 76 on March 27, 2013.

Benny Spellman was an R&B singer who released two significant hits during the 1960s. His “Lipstick Traces (On A Cigarette),” written by Allen Toussaint, cracked the Top 30 on the R&B charts, while his original version of “Fortune Teller” went on to be recorded by the likes of the Rolling Stones, the Who, the Hollies, and more recently, as a duet by Robert Plant and Alison Krauss. Spellman also collaborated with Huey “Piano” Smith and sang back up on the Ernie K-Doe hit, “Mother In Law.” Although he went on to work outside the music business by the early ’70s, Spellman continued to perform at festivals and such for many years. Benny Spellman died of respiratory failure on June 3, 2011. He was 79.

Although he was probably the most important figure from the country-soul scene of the ’60s and ’70s, Arthur Alexander was by no means a house hold name. But as a songwriter, he DID have some heavy weight fans in the Beatles, Bob Dylan and the Rolling Stones, being the only artist to have songs covered by all three. Alexander’s songs have also been recorded or performed live by George Jones, Johnny Paycheck, the Hollies, Esther Phillips, Humble Pie, Joe Tex, and even Pearl Jam, to name a few. Alexander all but retired from the music business in the ’80s, finding work as a bus driver. Thanks to renewed interest in his songs during the early ’90s, Arthur Alexander mounted a comeback, but suffered a fatal heart attack within a few months of signing a new record deal.

Clint Ballard Jr. was a successful American songwriter who, over the course of his career wrote numerous charting singles. Some of his most recognized songs are “You’re No Good” (Linda Ronstadt), “Game of Love” (Wayne Fontana), and “I’m Alive” (the Hollies). Two of his songs landed at the top of the Billboard singles chart while two others made it into the UK top ten. His songs have also been recorded by the likes of Ricky Nelson, Frankie Avalon, Connie Francis, and Jan and Dean. Clint Ballard Jr. was 77 when he passed away on December 23, 2008.